Gulf of Aden

Thus far on day 119 of our 141 day world cruise, here are some consumption totals for a ship of 1300 persons, both passengers and crew.

26,456 pounds of bananas
200,000 eggs
166,000 pounds of beef
89,000 pounds fresh fish
10, 303 gallons of milk
25,000 containers of yogurt
18,740 pounds of French fries
17,737 pounds of rice
56,000 pounds of potatoes
4,189 pounds of strawberries
300,000 bottles of water
55,000 rolls of toilet paper

AND ......

80,000 bottles of wine

Lord only knows how much coffee, poultry, sugar and liquor have been consumed.

Now I know why all of us have clothes that seem to be shrinking a bit. I’m guessing that the damp, salty ocean air causes cloth to shrink. That must be it, because no one onboard is overeating.

God bless the provisions team that plans, orders and loads all of the supplies needed to run the Viking Sun. This team has to deal with customs officials, and consumption levels must be constantly monitored as well as availability of items in our ports of call around the world. Quality control and delivery logistics in addition to the cost of these items keeps this team quite busy. They also work closely with the executive chefs and the culinary team to make sure that all the ingredients needed for the world cruise menus are available. The provisions team is also responsible for sourcing and maintaining an inventory of wines, other beverages, toiletries, chemicals for the laundry, bed linens, glassware, plates . . . the list is exhausting. And they labor out of sight below the decks and under the water line. Truly they are the backbone of the ship.Read more